


Tiny Surprises

by NvrLndBoi



Series: SH 25 Days of Pairings [12]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV), The Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Cooking Attempts, Fluff, Hanukkah, M/M, Recipes are hard, sfw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-12
Updated: 2020-12-12
Packaged: 2021-03-10 19:54:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 952
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28022754
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NvrLndBoi/pseuds/NvrLndBoi
Summary: Day 12 of 25 Days of Pairings: SaphaelRaphael tries to surprise his boyfriend and Lily gets roped into helping him.
Relationships: Simon Lewis/Raphael Santiago
Series: SH 25 Days of Pairings [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2035042
Comments: 4
Kudos: 34





	Tiny Surprises

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!
> 
> Serious note: If at some point I misrepresent or misspell something about Hanukkah, please, please, please call me out on it.
> 
> Be it in the comments or through an anonymous [Ask](https://antisocial-af.tumblr.com/ask). I **100%** welcome and encourage it.
> 
> Thank you, [brightasstars](https://archiveofourown.org/users/brightasstars) for being my Beta! 
> 
> Enjoy.

“This one is better than the last one…” Lily offered as she drowned another one of Raphael’s failed attempts. “Honestly, I think you are just putting too much water in them. They are so loose.” 

Raphael groaned and put the other failed three latkes on the first test pile. 

“I’m following the instructions!” he stated, frustrated. He had been attempting to make latkes for the last hour., to surprise his boyfriend, “I don’t know why they aren’t coming out.” 

“Why not just ask Simon?” Lily suggested as she stood up and went to retrieve another water bottle from the fridge. “He would probably be able to tell you what is wrong with them.” 

“The whole point of surprising your boyfriend with food he adores and misses is the surprise part, Lily.” 

“Don’t get snappy with me because you are losing to a potato,” Lily snapped back as she uncapped her water. “It could be a cute couple bonding thing; they worked for your older brother and Alec.” 

“Please don’t mention them. I just got off the phone with Magnus before you got here, and if I have to hear about one more Christmas gift he got for Alec that would match perfectly with his beautiful eyes, I will emancipate myself from being his brother,” Raphael ranted as he started to prepare more potatoes and onions for the next batch. 

“I don’t think that’ll ever be a thing,” she provided while scrolling through her phone. 

“Watch me,” he resolved, “I will set myself free of him if he keeps that up. At this point, I’d take him talking to me about the latest thing Chairman did.”

“What did Chairman now?” Simon called out from the apartment’s door. “Did he get into Magnus’ make-up drawers again?” 

Raphael internally groaned when he realized his boyfriend was already home and he hadn’t finished his surprise yet. Simon wasn’t supposed to be back for another hour. His boyfriend worked in a recording studio and had to go in today to meet with a new artist that was supposed to run late. 

“Lily! How you’ve been? Why are you here?” Simon fired off questions as he entered the kitchen. 

“Raphael called me over for some help,” Lily answered truthfully while shooting Raphael a smirk and wink. “But, Maia just texted me, so I have to head out.” 

“Oh, okay. See you later!” Simon replied back to her as she left, waving at them. 

Raphael waved back, internally cursed at her for snitching on him. He knew Simon would see the ingredients and put it all together; there was no point in lying to his boyfriend. 

“So what did you need help with, Raph?” Simon asked, looking at the counter. “What are you making?”

Raphael could hear the hopefulness and excitement in his boyfriend’s tone. It didn’t matter anymore that the surprise was ruined. He could improvise still and spend time with Simon instead, as Lily had suggested. 

“I was trying to surprise you,” Raphael explained as he pulled Simon close. “Lily came over so she could be my taste tester for latkes. I was going to have some ready for when you came home, but for some reason, they keep falling apart.” 

“Aww, you made tiny latkes,” Simon said as he looked at the plate. He pulled away from Raphael to grab one and looked at it for inspection. “They look good, so why do you think they are bad?” 

“They aren’t supposed to be little,” Raphael mumbled into Simon’s shoulder. “But every time I cook them, they fall apart and come out like that, instead of a whole one.” 

“Oh,” Simon inspected the plate of _failures,_ and at the ingredients _,_ his boyfriend had out to make the latkes. “They have too much liquid when you cook them. I’m surprised the grease wasn’t more aggressive.”

“I followed the online recipe precisely,” Raphael rebutted. He had gone through a few before he found one that he felt comfortable with executing. He showed Simon his phone as proof, “See.” 

“They missed a step,” Simon explained as he pointed out the parts between preparing the potatoes and the onions and mixing all the ingredients. “After you take them out of the food processor, you are supposed to drain all the extra liquid from the onions and potatoes.”

“Are you kidding me?” Raphael groaned as he looked up and glared at his phone, “I’ve been doing it wrong for an hour!” 

“I’m sorry, Raph,” Simon chuckled and kissed his boyfriend’s cheek. “How about we make them together? I haven’t made latkes since I was a kid.”

“I would like that,” Raphael answered as he tipped Simon’s face back to seal their lips. He needed that after the mess and realization he just went through. “We can make some and eat them while watching a movie. It’s still too early to light the third candle, right?” 

Simon looked over to the clock hanging in the kitchen. It was still only 5 pm. For the two years that they had been together, they’d always celebrated both Hanukkah and Christmas. Simon had been surprised the first year when Raphael had asked him if he needed to buy a menorah for Hanukkah or if he had brought one when he moved in. He knew Raphael was respectful of his religion and holidays, and his boyfriend had often asked him questions about all the different celebrations. Still, Raphael’s interest in celebrating Hanukkah with him and learning about the significance behind it had moved him deeply. 

“We can do it after a movie,” he confirmed before turning back to Raphael and the counter of ingredients with a smile. “Now shall I teach you how to make real latkes?” 

**Author's Note:**

> Credits:
> 
> Beta: [brightasstars](https://archiveofourown.org/users/brightasstars)
> 
> Don't forget both TV Show and Book Pairings can be used in the [Shadowhunters Rare Pair Exchange](https://sh-rare-pair-exchange.tumblr.com/).
> 
> 12 pairings left and 13 days left. Have a question or a prompt? Drop me an [Ask](https://antisocial-af.tumblr.com/ask).
> 
> See you again tomorrow.


End file.
